The following Czechoslovakian Christmas tradition was performed in the USC Village on April 12th, 2019. Every Christmas eve, while the informant’s family eats dinner “there’s like this little wooden box that’s open at the top and decorated to look like a chimney, and we call it ‘the chimney.'”  Everyone has a ribbon with their name on it and “you pull your little gift out of the open chimney and it’s your first Christmas present of the year.” Gifts include items like notebooks, pencils, and “little treats to get excited for Christmas”. 

The chimney came from their Czechoslovakian neighbors (the Kysela family) who are “our best family friends and that started with their great grandma. They had done the chimney forever, was always a tradition of theirs and because we’re so close they made us a chimney.” This Christmas tradition combines the tradition of opening one gift the night before and the lore of Santa coming down from the chimney.